Back to the Drawing Board

I had a job interview this week for a Programmer/Analyst position in New Jersey. It was only my third actual interview since last August so it was kind of hard not to put a lot of emotional stake into it. I did quite well - I answered all the questions clearly and concisely, presented myself as an agreeable team player and asked a few relevant questions of my own. In short, I did everything right. I could tell that the interviewer liked me as, for one thing, he spent over an hour talking to me. Unfortunately, I don't think I am going to get the job. On one hand I am somewhat overqualified. This job is strictly writing or making changes to programs according to specs that have already been written. I am used to being the one who writes those specs, either to give to others or to do myself. On the other hand, their shop is totally DB2 (a type of database) and my DB2 experience is not that strong. Not that I couldn't learn it in a few weeks and bring myself up to speed - it's really not all that difficult. And I think my interviewer realized that. But with all the competition out there I am sure they will find someone with exactly the right type and amount of experience they need. My severance pay (and insurance) ends at the end of February and although I still have some options even then, I am feeling the pressure more and more. So, for the last two days I did little more than eat bad-for-ya's and watch TV but now it's time to rejoin the living. And there's no better way to get started than with a batch of cool tunes.

The A-Bones - Betty Lou Got A New Tattoo

Over the years I've seen the A-Bones play at least 50 times and some of my craziest, drunkenest evenings have been spent carrying on with various members of the band. They are all all about fun, pure and simple.   
Andre Williams - Didlee Didlee Womp Womp

I've also been fortunate enough to see Andre Williams perform on a number of occasions and he's never been anything less than a total blast.  He must be in his 70s at least, but age has not slowed him down one bit.  
The Bedforde Set - Girl Go Run Away

In God's perfect world some garage fanatic (like myself maybe) would be given free reign to go through RCA's vault of single masters from the 60s and put together a fantastic 1 or 2-disc set of some of the fiercest garage records known to man. They released a ton of 'em  back in the day and this is one of my favorites. I paid $20 for mine about 12 years ago but now I see it's going for almost $150 on Gemm Music. Luckily you can also find it on Fuzz, Flaykes & Shakes Vol. 3.
Couple - Gurl Stop It Now

A few weeks ago I posted an item about Couple's new album "Teenage Disc Fantastic" and while it is not yet for sale anyplace in the US, it has been released in Malaysia and has sold over 800 copies just at their gigs alone with no real distribution. Keep checking back and as soon as it's available I'll post all the relevant info. In the meantime, here is one of my favorite songs from the album.
Hot Boogie Chillun - You'll Never Know

I'm not too crazy about many of the newer Rockabilly bands playing about, but HBC are better than most. They've got a nice Stonesey R&B/Garage influence going on and they've even been known to cover an occasional Wailers or Sonics song.

Adrian Lloyd - Lorna

Here's another Garage classic that would sell for majorly big bucks if you could even find a copy. Like most of the Garage loving world, I first heard this screamer on Vol. 8 of Back From The Grave. God bless Crypt Records!

Jackie Moore - Precious Precious

In my last music post I talked about how not all 70s Soul music is about Disco. Here Jackie Moore sings in a pure Southern Soul style that sounds as timeless as anything that came out on Stax a decade or so earlier.    

Jefferson Airplane - It's No Secret

I'm generally not all that into live recordings (unless I was actually there) but JA's version of "...Secret" recorded at the Fillmore East is way superior to the one found on their first album.

The Jelly Bean Bandits - Generation

This Newburgh, NY combo sounds as if they either took "Star Trek" a little too seriously or perhaps there was something funny in the water. But either way "Generation" is 3 minutes of pure  demented, psychedelic genius.

Bevis Frond - He'd Be a Diamond

This is the original version of "...Diamond" which was covered by Teenage Fanclub and posted here last November.   

Kenny Lund - Rip It Up, Potato Chip

I heard this song on Dave The Rave's "Relics and Rarities" show on Top Shelf Oldies last Saturday night and was relieved to see that at least I had it on an mp3 when I couldn't find a copy on either Gemm Records or Ebay. If you are home on Saturday night from 10 PM to 3 AM EST, you should give Dave a listen as he has an incredible record collection and you never know what he's going to play. 

Manfred Mann - Pretty Flamingo

When I was learning to play guitar I used to play this song for hours on end. It's a testament to how great this record is in that I never got sick of it. I also never got to be any good on guitar either - unless you count air guitar. 
Nick Lowe - American Squirm

I've always loved this song. I'm probably way wrong but I've always had this idea that there was some deep sexual connotation to this song. I mean, how DID he make that American squirm?

Ronnie Bird - I Can Only Give You Everything

Them's version of this classic stompfest will always be the definitive one but Ronnie more than holds his own here. I've never thought of French as the language of Rock & Roll before but I guess there's always a first time.  

The Soul Brothers Six -You Better Check Yourself

These guys had a handful of singles in somewhat the same style as "Some Kind of Wonderful" which ended up being covered by Grand Funk Railroad. Most, if not all, of their classic 60s soul pounders came out on Atlantic so maybe one of these days someone will actually do a definitive SB6 package. 

Teenage Fanclub - Take the Long Way Round

From their "Songs From Northern Britain" album, "...Long Way Round" is TFC doing what they do best. Slightly wistful but not depressing and just upbeat and melodic enough to sing along to by the second or third chorus. I mentioned this once before but I hope at some point they decide to put out a box set that includes some of their single b-sides. 

Albert Ayler - Love Cry

This took me a few plays to fully appreciate. The first few times I listened to it I concentrated mainly on the melody he plays on his alto sax (which on its own is actually quite lovely) and gradually the rest of it fell into place. I purposely placed it at the end of the set so it is easy to skip but I strongly encourage you to give it a chance.

Look to the skies. The flying saucers will always be there.